The Radavist

We’ve got quite the compound at the top of a lookout over St. George, where we’ve been riding for a few days before finishing out our trip at Gooseberry Mesa. Hopefully you can get in some good riding this weekend!

Today, Kyle and I are packing up the ‘Cruiser with mountain bikes and camping gear to spend a week in Utah riding the trails of St. George, Hurricane and Gooseberry with the boys from Angry Catfish in Minneapolis. We’ve got content coming in through the Radar and Reportage, so stay tuned!

Professional cycling’s alleged use of motorized race bikes gets an in-depth look in the latest 60 Minutes. Apparently, the video embed isn’t compatible with this site, so you’ve gotta go to CBS News to watch it.

Photo by Donalrey on Instagram

Our friends in NYC are in drastic need of infrastructural improvement on their lifeline out of the city and into the woods. Help make the George Washington Bridge safer for cyclists and pedestrians by signing this petition.

“Between 2017 and 2024, the Port Authority will rip out and restore the 1931-era paths on the George Washington Bridge as part of a $1.9 billion recabling and restoration project. The GWB is the sole bike-able connector between North Jersey and New York City. Its 7’ paths are dangerously overcrowded at 3700 cyclists per day and that use is growing 10% per year. If that sustains, we’ll see 9,000 cyclists per day by the time the paths re-open in 2024.

The PA should seize this once-in-a-lifespan opportunity to widen the paths to comply with national standards for a high use bicycle-pedestrian facility, but their plan is to restore them as sidewalks. Which means sooner rather than later, cyclists will have to walk.”

Our buddy Gabe from Limberlost was in town after the Baja Divide, completing his strictly-taco and mezcal diet before heading back up to Oregon. While a month of riding in the Baja Penninsula is a great way to disconnect from it all, Gabe’s back to work on planning the Oregon Timber Trail. Over the next few months, he’ll be working with a team on cutting more trail and working to gain access to areas in the backcountry of Oregon. There’s a bigger story to be told with all of that, but for now, I just wanted to bid him adieu and safe travels back up North. Oh and sweet Chinook!

I’ve been trying to figure out a way to word this post, without being overtly political and without alienating anyone based on their beliefs, but it’s kind of impossible so I’ll jump right in. Right now, our National Parks and public lands are in a delicate position. The GOP passed a bill that “establish(es) a spending-neutral reserve fund relating to the disposal of certain Federal land.” and another that plans “To direct the Secretary of the Interior to sell certain Federal lands in Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, and Wyoming, previously identified as suitable for disposal, and for other purposes.” What this could mean is our National Parks, or other federal lands, could be sold off to corporations who would be able to do as they please. This leaves possibilities open to, yet not limited to: strip mining, fracking, drilling for oil or pipeline access. Unfortunately, no one knows what this bill could or would allow, but it’s terrifying to imagine the potential ramifications.

Now, some might call this an overreaction, or what have you, yet we’re already seeing an effort to sensor various National Park’s Twitter accounts by the current administration. You can do some simple Google searches to form your own opinion on the matter.

While no one can look into the future, it is important for people who enjoy spending time in these lands to pay close attention to the current events and most importantly, support our National Parks. One of the ways I like to do so is each year, buy a National Parks Pass. It’s $80 and it pays for itself after a few visits.

Apologies for inserting politics into a website that has, for the most part, stayed politically-neutral.

All the rain and weather that moved through California recently has brought along with it lush, green vegetation and full nüke sunsets. Tonight in an attempt to shake the last leg of this winter cold I’ve succumbed to, Cari and I pedaled through Griffith Park to catch the last bit of daylight.

… to go play in the desert with Jeff from All-City while he’s in town! Hope you’re enjoying this long weekend and we’ll be back on Tuesday.

Coffee, friends and stoked faces. Thanks for the morning ride, guys! If you live in LA, and can make it out on a 2-4 hour ride each Friday morning, follow @GoldenSaddleCyclery for the meetup time and location each Thursday. The ride begins at Intelligentsia Coffee in Silver Lake and ends at Free Coffee Friday at Mission Workshop, to ensure you’re good and caffeinated all day.

We’ll see you at the All-City GSC Happy Hour Ride this afternoon. Enjoy the weekend!

The weather here in California has been on one lately and I can’t say we’re complaining! Today Vernor and I took to some of my favorite roads in LA to watch the spectacle and partake in some grippy dirt.

This time of year, it seems like every other day someone’s in town, wanting to venture out into the mountains for some shredding. We’ve had a lot of rain in Los Angeles over the past few weeks, making the backcountry trails particularly tacky and chilly. This, as you’re well aware, makes for pristine riding conditions. Clayton had never ridden deep in the San Gabriels before, so I took him to Chilao, my personal favorite, for a bit of Friday morning shredding.

Enjoy the weekend and I hope you can get in some riding. Check out a few more photos below.

… and we did our best to keep up.

Like many professional cyclists, Taylor Phinney heads to warmer climates in the off-season to train. It just so happens that his locale of choice is Los Angeles. Last year, he rode from LA to Joshua Tree “just cuz” and this year, he’s staying in the neighborhood, exploring the climbs throughout Los Angeles County. Yesterday, Kyle from GSC texted me a cryptic message “Cross Town Ride 11am – meet at Intelli.” Around 10 minutes prior to the meet-up, he included an additional note “I’m running late, but Taylor will be there at 11.” Meaning, Taylor Phinney.

… both on and off the bike – or a little bit of both – is the best! Thanks to Nam and Poppi for such an excellent evening. More on these two and this bike in the New Year.

We’ve still got our year-end recap on the way, so look for it this afternoon or tomorrow. It’s been a long, long year!

Yesterday, Golden Saddle and Rapha led a ride up through the Hollywood hills and onto Dirt Mulholland, in the Santa Monica Mountains. It’s the classic East to West ride in LA, with a bit of everything, for everyone. We had about 40 people show up and the group’s dynamic was perfect. Everyone waited to regroup at the turns and to finish off the day, we stopped for fish tacos and margaritas.

Thanks to GSC and Rapha for putting this together and to everyone who came out! If you’re interested in doing this exact ride, check out the related stories in the sidebar on the left and see more photos below.